Image of Event Production Plans and Rolls

How Engineer Certified Drawings for Events Can Make (or Break) Your Activation – An Event Planners Guide

Custom structures at your indoor or outdoor activation

If you are an event marketing professional, then you have probably used a production company to build a custom structure for your client at an activation or trade show. Custom structures built from truss or staging can be used as elevated seating for attendees or VIP’s, gateway arches or signage towers. These structures can be huge show elements, massive custom stages or as small as a single piece of trussing. However, they all have one thing in common – they are subject to inspection by a city official and will need engineer certified drawings for events of this kind.

In an indoor activation, the person from the city is typically the Fire Marshall or a member of his or her staff. In an outdoor activation, it will typically be a city building inspector. However, this is not an absolute – either one can show up at either event type. Both have the power to write very expensive compliance tickets to your end client, hold the doors closed until you comply with city regulations, or in extreme cases, close your event and escort all attendees out of the event space.

So what is an engineer certified drawing?

With any custom structure, the city can require an engineer certified drawings for events. This is a CAD drawing of the structure to be built with detailed instructions on how it is to be flown (in indoor environments), ground supported (for both indoor and outdoor shows) and ballasted (for outdoor events).

These engineer certified drawings for events may incorporate elements of the venue for flown rigs and will definitely incorporate tolerances for wind speed, ballast weight and banner types for outdoor structures. These drawings are created by a engineer who is certified to do business in the State you are working in. When the drawing is complete, the engineer will apply a stamp to the drawing which signifies the structure is safe to be built.

It’s vitally important that the engineer and production company work together in the creation of the original drawings, as well as the execution of the structure build. If the structure is not built to the specifications the engineer has outlined, the city inspector can fail you (also called a ‘red tag’) and require changes to be made before a second inspection is carried out. If the build is correct, you get a green tag and a sign off by the city to have your event.

Here’s a list on how most permitting is done in US cities:

The client or show designer has the initial idea.
A production company is contacted and they take the idea and turn it into a rendering or quote for client review.
On review, the production company contacts an engineer licensed in the State. The engineer reviews the drawings or specifications from the production company, then creates his own set of drawings showing ballasts, accepted tolerances and detailed installation instructions.
Once drawings are complete, a permit request is filed with the city with the drawings attached. Some cities will require an event permit to be filed first. Occasionally, a permit will not be required, but a review of the drawings will be required.
The structure is built on site and the city makes an appointment to review. Hopefully, the structure is passed, or green tagged. If it fails the review, you will have to request a second time slot for a re-review. Typically, a city official can only fail a structure if it is not built to the specifications that are in the drawings.
The event happens and exceeds your clients wildest dreams. You are so impressed with the production team that you take all members of the production company on a week long, all expenses paid vacation to Hawaii.

It’s always a good idea to have an engineer certified with the State to be on site when the city inspector or fire marshal is scheduled – even if the engineer was not the one who created the original drawings. Any certified engineer licensed to practice in the State you are working in can provide a stamped ‘letter of compliance’. This is basically a letter stating the production company has built the structure to the drawings supplied in the permitting process.

Wow – this is some great information. And you are an incredibly talented writer. Any other advice?

Well, since you asked – certainly!

Dealing with city officials can be incredibly frustrating. It’s important to remember that their job is ultimately to make sure your attendees are safe. Fire Marshals can be downright obstinate about exits being blocked, but there is a good historical reason for concern. A city inspector can (and will) hold the doors closed to your event until your production company reads the plans correctly and installs the right amount of ballast to a gateway. The majority of them are not trying to make your life difficult – they simply have a job to do. And frankly, it’s a job you really want them to do to the best of their abilities.

With that in mind, treat city employees with respect and they will do the same. Be positive, polite and factual. (This works well for police officers, DMV employees and social security employees as well.) If you don’t know the answer to a question, find the production company. If they don’t know, call the engineer who put the drawings together. Answering a city inspector with “I don’t know” will not work well. Select one knowledgeable person to meet with the inspector, not a group of people who don’t know anything about the build. Your clients are the absolute wrong person to meet with a city inspector. If you step back and allow the production company and engineers to interact with city inspectors and fire marshals, you’ll be much happier (and stress-free).

We hope you’ve enjoyed this article. When you are ready, take a moment and Ask Us a Question of the professionals at In Depth Events. We have nationwide experience with building structures with engineer certified drawings for events and we’ve love the opportunity to show you our skills. We look forward to hearing from you and working with you!

Image of Concert Production for Univision Radio Event

Turnkey Concert Production for Univision Radio

Univision Radio is one of the major players in the Dallas Fort Worth hispanic market. Their radio promotions department do a large concert event every May that pulls in a very targeted demographic of people and a large chunk of sponsorship dollars. With an estimated 20,000 people in attendance, sponsors get impressions to their potential customers via banners, logo rotation on jumbotrons and a VIP riser directly to the right of the stage. The attendees get a day long, non-ticketed event with multiple national acts, food vendors and on stage giveaways.

Without even contacting us, Univision Radio began checking our references. As a certified building contractor in Dallas, a preferred vendor at Fair Park, Univision checked with some of our satisfied clients and on our solid reputation within the City of Dallas. Univision finally contacted us to request a bid. When our bid was accepted, Univision let us know that we were the only bidder – after checking our references, they knew that we were the vendor for their show.

Univision – Festival De Mayo – Fair Park Dallas, Tx

It’s always a pleasure to know that your work is recognized by your peers. When your reputation speaks for itself, then clients like Univision Radio (and our other clients) stand up and take notice. We lived up to their name and reputation by handling full production for this event. We provided a 40 foot x 40 foot load bearing rooftop structure, lighting, audio system, power distribution, scaffolding and barricade for this concert. Our stage ran on time all day and set changes between the acts were smooth and trouble free. At the end of the show, the Univision Radio contact told our owner that it was the best, smoothest show that he had ever been involved with.

Now, that’s what we like to hear! If you are ready to show your clients and sponsors how a festival stage should look and sound, then Ask Us a Question about your upcoming event. We are ready to promote your brands anywhere in the nation. We look forward to hearing from you and working with you!

Pop 2 Life – Conan O’Brien Dallas, Tx 2014

Smart Marketing…

Most live event marketing campaigns are based around other, larger events. From concert lounges at SXSW, to sports apparel promotions surrounding the NBA All Star Jam, smart marketing teams combine their brands with the targets expected at national level events.

Conan O’Brien and a national level event…

The geniuses promoting the Conan O’Brien show targeted the hoopla surrounding NCAA March Madness in Dallas. A weeklong mini-tour using a branded Conan O’Brien Airstream trailer was dispatched, and guests were treated to live music, memorabilia, and Conan giveaways. Each tour drop was centered in an area guaranteed to have lots of walk-through, targeted traffic.

Production Needs…

Production Experience was contracted to handle the power needs, staging, audio, and lighting for each tour drop – as well as providing an ADA lift for disabled guests. Even with tight turnarounds, the crew of Production Experience performed flawlessly, and the end result was a very successful promotion for the show. Find out how our event experts can provide production for your live event marketing needs – contact us today!

New Trends in Live Event Marketing – Concert Lounges, VIP Lounges, Skyboxes and Viewing Platforms

A New Way to See the Show – Concert Lounges, VIP Lounges, Skyboxes and Viewing Platforms

It’s an age old problem for marketers at concerts, festivals and sporting events – how do you actively engage the audience for your product or service from a 20 foot x 10 foot booth space? Your potential consumers are walking by your activation with strollers in front and children trailing along behind. The last thing they want to hear is a sales pitch as they walk from the parking lot to the event – or even worse, from the event back to the parking lot. In this unfortunate environment, you reduce your street team to carnival barkers trying to get another dollar at the ‘pitch till you win’ tent.

A new trend, however, is emerging from experiential experts and marketing firms which may come as a surprise to some. The new trend is to engage the client by giving them place to *gasp* sit down and enjoy the event! Instead of trying to steal their attention away from the event and on to your product, simply provide concert lounges or skyboxes that complement your brand along with the event they came to see. This radically simple idea is starting to take the live event marketing world by storm. And the production experts at In Depth Events are here to guide you to the right activation for your brand!

Concert Lounges at Music Festivals

GMR Miller Lite Lounge, SXSW 2014

Outdoor festivals are a lot of fun – for about 30 minutes. After you throw your blanket down, it’s only a matter of time before someone steps on your fingers, blocks your view or lights up next to your kids. (“Dad, what’s that smell?”) Wouldn’t it be nice to have a comfortable place to watch the show without… well, the rest of the attendees?

At SXSW 2014, the largest outdoor festival of its kind in the world, two beverage companies provided concert lounges. These activations were off-the-ground platforms with security personnel, comfortable seating and beverages; along with a live video feed of the event. Both lounges were general admission and provided outstanding views of the main stage at Butler Park.

The first activation was by the energy drink, Monster. They served their namesake product along with non alcoholic soda and other beverages. With a ground level seating area and a covered platform, they were able to represent their brand to attendees without actively ‘pitching’ their product.

The second use of concert lounges by Miller Lite was built from the ground up by our production experts. The activation footprint featured a commanding 100 foot x 40 foot raised platform where attendees could charge their mobile devices, relax on furniture and see the Main Stage show in real time on several video monitors. Of course, the bar served ice cold Miller Lite with graphics scattered around the activation to reinforce the brand.

These activations showed that attendees could both enjoy the event they came to see and the marketing firm could promote their client’s brand in a complementary way. Most importantly, at both activations, attendees were charged for the beverages but not for entry to the concert lounges. In other words, the marketing firm was able to show sales figures as a direct link to impressions.

“Best Seat in the House” Viewing Platforms at Concerts

Liberman VIP Lounge

VIP Risers at concerts are not a new idea. However, providing a “Best Seat in the House” viewing platform takes an old idea and puts a new twist on it – plus the ability to market to a select group of consumers!

Pepsi has had a great deal of success with viewing platforms at Liberman Broadcasting concerts. This hispanic-themed event garners 20,000 attendees in the Dallas market for both spring and fall concerts. A 20 foot x 20 foot platform is erected off stage right, raised at the same level of the stage and covered with tents. Then, a select group of attendees are invited to the platform to watch their favorite bands. Of course, Pepsi brand ambassadors are there to give away plenty of ice cold beverages and CPGs to the lucky attendees.

While this concept doesn’t work for general admission, it gives a few lucky attendees the ability to see the show from the “Best Seat in the House” and garners the Pepsi brand lifelong consumers. The platform and the marketing banners attached to it are easily viewable by the main audience, so not only do you get ‘eyes-on’ impressions in the audience, you also have the ability to interact with general audience members who might want to be on the platform during the next concert.

Skyboxes and VIP Lounges: Perfect for Outdoor Sporting Events or Indoor Trade Shows!

Heineken Viewing Platform

Providing an elevated viewing platform is a great way to get your potential consumers around your branding and engage your specific product – while still being able to relax and enjoy the event. While this is not a new idea at events like golf tournaments (where the attendee demographic includes top income earners), the concept is making new inroads at other events. Automobile racing events, large corporate sponsored ‘tailgate parties’ for professional football, baseball and basketball events and even extreme events like the X-Games and motocross events are now seeing skyboxes sprout up around their events.

What about a viewing platform at a trade show? Heineken is the latest to provide an elevated viewing platform at a beer convention in Houston, TX. This commanding L-shaped viewing platform was 11 feet tall and was an amazing way for invited guests to view the trade show in style. Of course, the structure was branded with Heineken graphics so attendees were able to see exactly which company provided the biggest and best presence at the show.

Now, to find the best provider!

Providing a potential consumer a way to relax and enjoy the event they came to see, while still being able to promote your brand, is a simple but revolutionary new concept. These new trends in experiential and live event marketing are already here. Your client will be utilizing these new types of activations to communicate with their consumers. Make sure to bring your clients the best solution for their specific needs – or they’ll find someone else to do it!

When providing concert lounges, VIP lounges, skyboxes or viewing platforms, it’s important to choose a production company that can work with your activation staff to provide the best experiential footprint for your clients. The professionals at In Depth Events are experts at providing structures for your next footprint, as well as the audio, lighting and video requirements to make sure your message is clear. Ask Us a Question today and find out how we can help you take advantage of these new trends!

Author: Robert Chapman